If you enjoy VR horror games, we’ve compiled the best list of top scary titles. These VR games will have your heart rate pumping as you play them.
For each game, we’ll go over:
- What VR platform they are on
- A review of the game
- Gameplay videos for each game!
If we’ve missed your favorite VR horror game, comment at the bottom of this guide and let us know.
- What are the Best VR Horror Games?
- Types of VR Horror Games
- Other Top VR Games
- Half Life: Alyx Review – Best AAA Horror Game for VR
- Green Hell VR Review – Best VR Horror-Crafting Game
- Layers of Fear VR Review – Best VR Horror Puzzles
- The Twilight Zone VR Review –
- Phasmophobia Review – Best VR Survival Game
- The Forest Review – Best Open-World VR Horror Game
- The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners Review – Best Walking Dead VR Game
- Five Nights at Freddy's Review – Best Horror Game For New Players
- Dreadhalls Review – Best Procedural VR Horror Game
- AFFECTED: The Manor – Best Haunted House VR Game
- The Exorcist: Legion VR – Best VR Horror Storyline
- Resident Evil 7: Biohazard – Best PlayStation VR Horror Game
- Lies Beneath Review – Best Action Horror Game
- Face Your Fears 2 Review – Best Level-Based Horror Game
- Until Dawn: Rush of Blood Review – Best VR Shooting Horror Game
- Red Matter 2 – Best Psychological VR Horror Game
What are the Best VR Horror Games?
- Half-Life: Alyx
- Green Hell VR
- Layers of Fear VR
- The Twilight Zone VR
- Phasmophobia
- The Forest
- The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners
- Five Nights at Freddy’s
- Dreadhalls
- Red Matter
- AFFECTED: The Manor
- The Exorcist: Legion VR
- Resident Evil 7: Biohazard
- Lies Beneath
- Face Your Fears 2
- Until Dawn: Rush of Blood
Types of VR Horror Games
Scary virtual reality games come in a few different sub-genres.
Jump Scares
Games with jump scares try to catch you off guard and scare you unpredictably. Games like Five Nights at Freddy’s and The Forest try to take your guard down by keeping your hands busy. Then, when you least expect it, an enemy pops out in front of you.
Psychological
Psychological horror games immerse you with a spooky ambiance and atmosphere. Games like Red Matter and The Exorcist make you uncomfortable by putting you into situations that play with your emotions.
Likewise, Face Your Fears is a game about getting over your worst nightmares in VR.
Open World vs Linear
VR horror game stories can be open-world or linear in how they are told. The Forest is an open-world game where you must think about each action. Plus, you can take your game in different directions to survive the longest.
Linear games have a set storyline and levels from front to back. You often have just one purpose to complete, and they are more straightforward. Linear games are suited for shorter and casual play sessions.
No matter what style of VR horror game you like, the list below has something for you!
Other Top VR Games
After you check out this guide, go and check out some of our other top VR game guides:
Half Life: Alyx Review – Best AAA Horror Game for VR
- Price = $60
- Platforms = Steam
Half-Life: Alyx is a premium PC VR game developed by Valve specifically for virtual reality. Most lists have Alyx as the best VR game of all time, but we like it as a VR horror game option, too! It is an absolute must-buy for any VR headset on PC.
In Half-Life: Alyx, you control Alyx Vance on a mission to seize a super weapon belonging to the alien Combine. Each level and mission is built for virtual reality, and all objects and game mechanics are perfect for VR. Your main weapon is gravity gloves, which can fight enemies and manipulate objects. Alyx is one of the most popular Steam VR games of all time.
Alyx doesn’t have many jump scares, but some missions and levels are terrifying. One famous mission has you tiptoeing past a blind, un-killable enemy named Jeff. It’s worth every penny of its price.
Green Hell VR Review – Best VR Horror-Crafting Game
- Price = $30
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Steam
Green Hell is a survival game with some really great crafting mechanics. You have to survive out in the jungle for as long as possible by collecting items that are useful for survival.
The atmosphere of the game is really great, and it makes you feel like there is danger around every corner. To survive, you have to hunt and kill wild animals, a unique virtual reality experience.
Green Hell is one of my favorite games of all time and being in the psychological-horror genre is just an extra benefit.
Layers of Fear VR Review – Best VR Horror Puzzles
- Price = $20
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Steam
Layers of Fear is a psychological VR horror game set in a creepy Victorian mansion. You have to wander through the halls to uncover the story and art of a painter gone mad. The game has psychedelic elements that trigger in certain parts of the game, which are cool to experience and also creepy at the same time.
I really enjoyed the puzzles in Layers of Fear, though doing them are a bit unnerving. The game does have regular jump scares.
My biggest complaint about Layers of Fear is the runtime. You can complete the game in under two hours.
The Twilight Zone VR Review –
- Price = $20
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Steam
Twilight Zone VR offers a unique anthology experience in virtual reality, weaving together distinct short stories with different characters and settings. If you are a fan of the show, you’ll understand the format of the game.
The gameplay in Twilight Zone VR is engaging, with each chapter presenting a different theme:
- stealth horror in an office
- survival in a post-apocalyptic wasteland
- an intriguing alien invasion
The visual and sound designs are basic, but effective voice acting enhances the narrative.
Phasmophobia Review – Best VR Survival Game
- Price = $14
- Platforms = Steam
Phasmophobia is a horrifying VR survival game. This game pits you in the shoes of an investigator whose mandate is to do dirty dangerous jobs for little pay. You use investigative tools, including spirit boxes and EMF meters to carry out your job. These tools enable you to communicate with the deceased and banish enemies from our world.
This ghost-hunter simulator is downright terrifying. The ghosts are spooky. Phasmophobia is a good addition to your collection, especially if you like watching shows like Minus the Death and Ghost Adventures.
The Forest Review – Best Open-World VR Horror Game
- Price = $20
- Platforms = Steam
The Forest is a survival VR horror game. Following a plane crash, you are stuck on an island with cannibalistic natives. The Forest is perfect for virtual reality, which makes the atmosphere scary. As the deadly inhabitants come in droves and as the sun sets, the landscapes of the peninsula come to life.
As you battle off cannibals to find your son, you are also tasked with gathering food and survival supplies at a time. You plan to find your son and escape the island. You play each game as long as you can survive. The game’s non-linearity is highly intimidating.
There are plenty of jump scares in the Forest. The game lulls you into crafting and building so that you forget you are being hunted.
The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners Review – Best Walking Dead VR Game
- Price = $30
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, Steam, Playstation VR
The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners is the best VR horror game in the highly successful Walking Dead universe. In the game, you face all the horrors the living and the dead can offer. Travel through the ruins of walker-infested New Orleans as you fight, sneak, scavenge, and survive each day, unraveling a city-wide mystery within the iconic quarters. Encounter desperate factions and lone survivors who could be friends or foes. Whether you help others or take what you want by force, every choice has consequences.
Recently, Saints and Sinners launched a new Trial mode, which has you fighting hordes of zombies in a more casual play game. A new chapter 2 called Retribution has re-energized the game’s fanbase
There aren’t many jump scares in Saints and Sinners, but the atmosphere is exciting and unsettling. Battling a horde of zombies is sure to keep your heart rate up.
Five Nights at Freddy’s Review – Best Horror Game For New Players
- Price = $30
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, Steam, PlayStation VR
Five Nights at Freddy’s is a famous jump scare horror game set in the Five Nights universe. This survival game pits you against different groups of scary mechanical animals. You play a night security guard watching cameras for any movement.
This game is a stressful experience; do not let the cartoon-style graphics or colorful aesthetic fool you.
In Five Nights at Freddy’s, you will engage with the animatronic beasts, including intricate puzzles that involve fixing machines. You will also explore the dilapidated environments.
Dreadhalls Review – Best Procedural VR Horror Game
- Price = $10
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, Steam
Dreadhalls is another survival VR horror game to try out. It has a little twist in the form of rogue-like elements and dungeon crawling. Each level is procedurally created so nothing is the same each time you play!
Dreadhalls gets scary as you continue to play and will slowly ramp up the tension.
You are equipped with a lantern in the game, plus a short supply of oil. You will solve puzzles and encounter many scary creatures along the way. You are meant to navigate the winding halls of Dreadhalls without running into the horrors that abound within. You have stealth as the only tool to fight the creatures thirsting for your blood.
There are positional audio cues to enhance the looming frights. These cues warn you of income monsters and keep your heart pumping fast.
AFFECTED: The Manor – Best Haunted House VR Game
- Price = $10
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, Steam, PlayStation VR
Affected: The Manor is a jump-scare filled horror game that takes place in a haunted house. The over-abundance of cobwebs, the creaking floorboards, and the creepy crawlies all blend well to transport us to a supernatural world. However, a 30-day stretch in Autumn limits our access to these attractions.
The mission of Affected: The Manor is to remove this limitation. The game sends players into these attractions using the power of virtual reality. There are no deranged killers to defeat, no puzzles to solve. However, your main challenge is to overcome your fears and pass each level.
The Exorcist: Legion VR – Best VR Horror Storyline
- Price = $25
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, Steam, PlayStation VR
The Exorcist: Legion VR is undoubtedly one of the most terrifying survival VR horror games in recent time. In the game, you play the role of an investigator out there searching for answers to strange things in the chapel.
As you investigate, you solve puzzles, explore unsettled environments, and use traditional tools like an old-fashioned flashlight and holy water to defend yourself.
The Exorcist: Legion VR spans different episodes and results into a blockbuster horror movie. It focuses on exorcism, demons, and spiritual threats. It also features scary demonic imagery across all the episodes.
The Exorcist: Legion VR supports all headsets so that anyone can check this one out.
Resident Evil 7: Biohazard – Best PlayStation VR Horror Game
- Price = $30
- Platforms = PlayStation VR, Steam
Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is a terrifying game on its own. But you will be even more immersed in the atmosphere when played through a VR headset. It is a survival game with a mix of ambient sounds and eerie lighting that doesn’t rely on jump scares to be uneasy.
In Biohazard, you play the character of Ethan. You are a young man who is searching for his wife, Mia, after she was kidnapped. As you explore in search of your wife, the terror increases.
The first-person gameplay further amplifies the horror in Resident Evil 7. This makes your experience more up-come and personal. The setting is terrifying, with human and animal carcasses scattered everywhere in the environment.
Lies Beneath Review – Best Action Horror Game
- Price = $30
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift
Lies Beneath is a survival horror game with an emphasis on action. It comes with stylized graphics that gives it a great look. Compared to many VR experiences, Lies Beneath is more substantial.
Something horrible has gone wrong in a sleepy town in Alaska. Mae, a student returning from college, must fight to save her sanity and her father from the terrifying creepy creatures. She must also fight to rescue herself from townsfolk that have infected her once peaceful town. The game is full of scary scenarios as you fight to uncover Mae’s past and the secrets of Slumber.
Mae will use ranged weapons, plus a full arsenal of melee to fight monsters throughout her town. You will solve puzzles to uncover hidden truths as she engages these monsters. The game features multiple comfort options and difficulty levels so you customize the gameplay to suit your preferences.
Face Your Fears 2 Review – Best Level-Based Horror Game
- Price = $20
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift
Face Your Face Fear 2 is a jump scare VR horror game you must have in your collection. This game is set inside a mansion and split into two chapters. The two chapters are separated by so many years. The first chapter showcases a protagonist looking everywhere for his sister after she was held at a party in the mansion.
As the protagonist continues to search for her sister through the grounds, snakes and red-eyed crows squawk suddenly appear. As you continue your search, a derelict she hides a key, which you must find. But first, you need to battle spiders bent on attacking you through the wooden slates.
Face Your Face 2 will make you jump. Plus, it comes with a terrifying atmosphere and may scare you if this is your first time playing VR horror games.
Until Dawn: Rush of Blood Review – Best VR Shooting Horror Game
- Price = $20
- Platforms = PlayStation VR
Until Dawn: Rush of Blood is a survival horror game that can immerse you in the world of VR. In the game, you will fight multiple relentless monsters bent on destroying you. The environments of the game are inspired by Until Dawn. Plus, this horror game features familiar elements along your way.
Additionally, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood throws scary imagery at you from all angles of the game. The results are frightening experiences that are enhanced by the arcade shooting gameplay. Until Dawn: Rush of Blood doesn’t have jump scares.
Red Matter 2 – Best Psychological VR Horror Game
- Price = $25
- Platforms = Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, Steam, PlayStation VR
Red Matter 2 is a story-based horror game set during the sci-fi Cold War. In the gameplay, you take on the role of an Agent called Epsilon. You are dispatched to an abandoned Volgravian moon very far from planet Earth. Your mission is to investigate a dirty secret research project.
Red Matter is a good mix of Soviet brutalism mixed up with puzzle adventure in a mysteriously abandoned atmosphere. The atmosphere is garnished with a slice of Cold War espionage.
There are no jump scares in Red Matter. Still, Red Matter is played in a creepy, unsettled atmosphere that plays with your emotions. It’s a fun and interesting game to play.
The sequel and the original Red Matter are both worth playing
What is your favorite VR horror game to play? Let us know in the comments below so that we can add it into this guide!
